December 05, 2018 at 01:21PM If you’re anything like me, you’re probably only eating whole olives in a chopped Greek salad or on top of a cauli-crust pizza (or perhaps in the bottom of a martini). But there’s actually a pretty good argument for grabbing a jar on your next Trader Joe’s run—like the olive oil they generate, whole olives are a simple way to add a hit of nutrients and flavor to pretty much any savory meal. As The Domestic Dietitian Brynn McDowell, RD, points out, these tiny fruits (yup, they’re fruits!) are a staple in the Mediterranean diet for a good reason. Research indicates that this way of eating slows the aging process, promotes longevity, and boosts good gut bacteria, which is why it’s a favorite of doctors and nutritionists. Of course, olives alone aren’t responsible for all these perks. But it’s safe to say that they pull their weight alongside the rest of the diet’s key foods, given all their healthy attributes. Are olives healthy? Let’s investigate 1. Olives are packed with heart-healthy fats McDowell points out that, like olive oil, olives are rich in monounsaturated fats, which fall under the “healthy fat” category. “Monounsaturated fatty acids have been linked to decreased inflammation and a reduced risk of heart disease,” she explains. But there’s one caveat: You’ll be getting considerably less fat if you opt for whole olives as opposed to olive oil. “Olive oil is made up of 100 percent fat, while olives contain about 20 percent fat,” says
Day: December 5, 2018
Asking for a friend: Is it gross to reuse makeup wipes?
December 05, 2018 at 11:53AM In an increasingly sustainable world where everyone is constantly promoting the “reduce, reuse, and recycle” lifestyle, people might be taking the slogan a little too far. Early this year, the CDC had to plead with the public to stop washing and reusing condoms (yep…)—and now there’s a skin-care PSA regarding your makeup wipes you should know about for the sake of your complexion. First thing’s first: Makeup remover wipes can definitely be pricey. Biodegradable and natural options can run you up to $26 for a pack of 30, so it’s no wonder why those who want to get their money’s worth try to get a couple uses out of each of those precious towelettes. The only issue? According to Dendy Engelman, MD, a New York City-based dermatologist, doing so could totally disrupt the very fragile ecosystem of skin. “The purpose of cleansing is two-fold: The first is to cleanse the skin of oils, impurities, makeup, and pollution particles, and the second is to aid the penetration of the products you’ll be applying afterwards. Clean skin will allow active ingredients to penetrate better and work more effectively,” she tells me. But when you’re reusing makeup wipes, watch out: You’re basically doing the exact opposite of what you’re trying to achieve. “Using a makeup wipe over again will smear old makeup and bacteria back onto your skin instead of removing it. Leaving bacteria and toxins on the skin increases your risk of inflammation, clogged pores, and breakouts, and it can even accelerate aging over
What do Probiotic CFUs and Strains Actually Mean? Here’s Your Explainer
December 05, 2018 at 11:20AM If you’ve taken a stroll down the probiotics aisle at your local pharmacy, you’ve probably been bombarded with an overload of numbers and various acronyms for which the only appropriate response is, “Huh??” But understanding the specific benefits of probiotics is vital to your friendship with your gut—so where do you start? “Not all probiotics are made equal,” Maggie Johnle, manager of innovation at Renew Life says. “Look for a diverse group of scientifically studied strains that you can easily take each day.” Still, it’s important to understand terms like “strains” and “CFUs” when they keep popping up on every bottle. So to help decode the wonderful world of probiotics for you, we asked Johnle to break things down. Keep scrolling to find out more about the benefits of probiotics and what CFUs and strains actually mean—and why they’re important when you’re probiotic shopping. 1. So, what’s a CFU anyway? *CFU* not UFO (they look similar though, so we get it). CFU stands for colony forming unit—but is often used interchangeably with cultures or culture count. “CFU or culture count is quite literally the number of microorganisms, encompassing all types, or strains,” Johnle says. And by “microorganisms,” we’re talking about the good-for-you bacteria that probiotics provide. Johnle suggests that adults look for at least 10 billion culture of CFU per serving in a probiotic, and recommends children start at around 1 billion and work their way up. That’s because the more CFUs you get, the more iron-clad your gut
An extremely rude study just attacked my love of sleeping
December 05, 2018 at 10:50AM Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt personally victimized by science. No, just me? Cool. Perhaps this extremely rude study published Wednesday in the European Heart Journal will change your mind. It looked at the sleep habits of over 100,000 people, aged 35-70, living in 21 different countries over the course of nearly eight years. At the end of the study there were 4,381 deaths and 4,365 cardiovascular events (like heart attacks and strokes). Looking at those incidences and comparing them to the reported amount of sleep, researchers found that sleeping more than eight hours per night was associated with an increased risk of death and major cardiovascular event, compared to people who slept for six to eight hours a night. So basically, my favorite weekend activity is under attack. Is personalizing the findings of exhaustive research dramatic? Yes, but I stand by my analysis, especially after reading their results in detail. Before adjusting for factors like existing illnesses, researchers found that for every 1,000 people who slept for six to eight hours a day, 7.8 people died or experienced major cardiovascular events. For people who slept eight to nine hours a night, that number was 8.4 per 1,000. For those who slept from nine to 10 hours a night, it was 10.4 per 1,000 people. And for people who slept over 10 hours a night, it was 14.8 per 1,000 people. (See that number going up with more sleep?) Translating that into risk, people
Just when we thought we’d tried every plank out there, we found the hardest one yet
December 05, 2018 at 10:11AM When a trainer cues plank position mid-workout, one thing’s for sure: Your abs will be screaming for at least the next two days. And while the stationary version of this killer move is brutal on its own, it seems that every single day yields a creative new way to level up the classic pre-push-up position. Most recently? The ultra-intense seal-walk plank—which, despite its name, is not cute at all. Recently, Zoë Weiner, associate beauty and fitness editor at Well+Good, faced this move in a morning HIIT class. “I consider myself a seasoned plank-er, but this move was so, so much harder than anything I’ve ever tried before—including plank jacks and high-to-low planks,” she tells me with lingering fear in her eyes. “My arms, legs, and core were quaking, and at one point I had to drop to my knees, which is how I knew it was working.” If you’re up for the challenge, you’ll first need to grab a pair of sliders and place them directly under your feet. Then, assume the push-up position and get ready to get down to business. “My arms, legs, and core were quaking, and at one point I had to drop to my knees, which is how I knew it was working.” —Zoe Weiner, associate beauty and fitness editor “In many ways, it’s like a walking plank, in which your hands move one at a time in front of you while your legs slide behind you on the sliders,” says Ivana
Unless your face has a yeast infection, maybe don’t put Vagisil on it
December 05, 2018 at 10:00AM Reddit is one of my favorite places to look for beauty tips. Even as a beauty editor, the Skincare Addiction and Makeup Addiction threads open my eyes to buzzy new products and ingredients that I otherwise wouldn’t have known about. But this morning, during my daily scroll, I stumbled upon a product hack that made me actually groan out loud in my desk chair. Apparently, people (like, a lot of people) are slathering their faces with Monistat—as in, the same brand you’d likely pick up from the drugstore if you were dealing with with a particularly itchy yeast infection—for the sake of a smoother makeup application. One woman took to the r/makeupaddiction thread to share that she swears by Monistat Complete Care Chafing Relief Powder Gel as a primer. Now, I’ll concede that it’s a chafing gel, but in the past, I’ve heard rumors of people using traditional Vagisil Maximum Strength Anti-Itch Creme to do the same thing. The reason? A key ingredient in these products is dimethicone, a silicone-substance that, when used in primers, coats the skin to allow for an even makeup application. Don’t get me wrong, anti-itch creams are totally helpful when there’s a fiery situation down south, but for the love of all things beauty, please, please stop putting vagina and chafing creams on your face. Even for those who suspect that they’re dealing with “fungal acne,” this isn’t the way to go. One Reddit user said that after trying the trick, she started getting breakouts, and this claim checks
Sorry, PETA: I’m vegan, but I won’t be saying I’m “bringing home the bagels” anytime soon
December 05, 2018 at 09:56AM Growing up, I didn’t think much about what I ate (seriously, I was anti-vegetable), which is why it took me until I was in my twenties to realize my love of animals didn’t align with my diet, prompting me to go vegan. And as a journalist, I like to think I choose my words carefully—but some idioms have become so ingrained in my vocabulary, they slip from my lips without a second thought. Which is why, even though I traded meat and dairy for tofu and mylk years ago, I still catch myself saying common phrases that aren’t exactly animal-friendly. Idioms like “kill two birds with one stone,” for starters. Killing birds isn’t nice, even if you’re doing so efficiently! But old habits die hard, and phrases like “bringing home the bacon” have been around for a long, long time (that particular one may date back to the 1100s). Which is, in part, why I definitely won’t be replacing them with things like “bring home the bagels” anytime soon. Words matter, and as our understanding of social justice evolves, our language evolves along with it. Here’s how to remove speciesism from your daily conversations. pic.twitter.com/o67EbBA7H4 — PETA (@peta) December 4, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) recently tweeted a list of anti-animal phrases and suggestions for updated, animal-positive replacements. “Words matter, and as our understanding of social justice evolves, our language evolves along with it,” the tweet reads. And I totally agree. The language
Peloton yoga is here, which means you can finally practice crow pose in peace
December 05, 2018 at 08:58AM Forget trekking to your favorite yoga class before the sun comes up: Thanks to Peloton‘s new yoga classes, it’s now easier than ever to bring the yoga studio to you. And, bonus (at least, if your practice looks anything like mine does)—there will be no one around to see you tumble out of tree pose in the wee hours of the morning. On Wednesday, the brand, which is currently valued at $4 billion, announced that it would be launching its first-ever yoga studio alongside its West Village Tread studio in New York City. Like Peloton’s game-changing spin and running programs, the classes will be available to live-stream across the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada—which means your living room is now basically a boutique fitness studio in and of itself. “As we did with the addition of Bootcamp, Running, Walking and Outdoor [classes] earlier this year, we are continuing to expand,” says Fred Klein, chief content officer of Peloton. “As with our other tentpole lines of programming, our focus will remain on providing the energy and authenticity of live studio production while providing the ultimate convenience of anywhere, anytime access via our On Demand platform.” Starting December 26, Peloton Bike and Tread owners and Peloton Digital subscribers will be able to practice their crow pose from the comfort of their living rooms with classes led by three instructors: Kristin McGee, Anna Greenberg, and Aditi Shah. Peloton is offering five different styles of yoga: flow, power yoga, restorative,
I love this egg-maker so much (and it’s Chrissy Teigen-approved, so that’s extra great)
December 05, 2018 at 08:36AM When I was growing up, my dad—who is quite the chef—repeated one mantra about a well-stocked kitchen: Any single-use appliance is a complete-garbage-waste-of-space. What’s really valuable, he believed (and still does) are Swiss army-type inventions like pots, pans, and knives that can tackle dozens upon dozens of tasks. So what did I do as a pretty lame form of teenage rebellion? I bought a pasta-maker, of course! And then when I wanted things to get v-gourmet, I added a ravioli-maker to the mix! These two items are now gathering dust in my family’s kitchen in Charleston (so sorry, dad), but I’ve found a new single-use appliance to obsess over. Behold, the Dash Egg Cooker ($16), which comes in Tiffany blue and can scramble, poach, hard-boil, and even dish out a mini-omelet at your beck and call. The contraption has four-and-a-half stars on Amazon, and Chrissy Teigen has even admitted to giving a similar version to her friends as a gag gift. But let me tell you—I received this as an actual gift from my old boss, and this tiny machine is no laughing matter. When you’re meal-prepping, the gizmo can whip out half a dozen salad-topping eggs in less than 10 minutes. When you need a quick breakfast on the go, the Dash comes in hot with protein-packed to-go options. And when you’re attempting to impress someone with your cooking prowess, you can gift them a carton of already-boiled eggs. (Okay, so that last one’s a reach. But
11 exercises that will give you Michelle Obama-level arms—no weights necessary
December 05, 2018 at 08:14AM If you’ve spent the better part of the last decade dreaming of getting Michelle Obama’s arms, but dread any and everything having to do with the weight rack, this one’s for you. In what may be the best fitness news ever—at least, for those of us who hate lifting weights—arm exercises without weights can be just as effective (and in some cases, even more effective) than burning them out with barbells. Whether you’re doing them for the sake some of IRL heavy lifting, or you simply want to show off some expertly toned triceps, any trainer will tell you that arm exercises are a gym-time necessity. “It’s very important to do arm exercises for several reasons,” says Stephen Pasterino, founder of P. Volve, a boutique fitness studio in New York City, including building strength, preventing back and shoulder injury, and being able to do functional, everyday movements. “Having a strong and capable upper body means being stronger in life,” agrees celebrity trainer Ashley Borden, who works with stars like Mandy Moore and Ryan Gosling. “Carrying your kids, hoisting luggage in and out of the overhead, moving heavy things, and arm strength plays into everyday life.” Most people think you need a set of free weights to build those muscles, but that’s decidedly not the case. “In fact, when toning and building up strength in your arms, it’s important to lengthen the muscle by using body weight exercises rather than compacting the muscle by lifting weights, which is shorten and tighten them,” explains